Good day and you’re very welcome to this guest blog. Kevin informs me that he has painstakingly built up a very substantial readership to his blog over the last six months, and to that end I’d like to welcome both of you back to these pages.
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Back in Michigan and back on the job. Almost like I never left … except that there’s still large piles of email and paper to go through.
I’m pleased to announce that my friend Simon, who visited me in Ireland for the first two weeks of May, will be a guest blogger, telling you all about what great fun we had during his visit. Keep an eye out for those posts soon.
I also started (but never finished) writing a few posts while in Ireland that I might manage to finish and post, even at the risk of having an even greater delay in reporting news than I generally had over the past few months. Bear with me, folks.
In the meantime, now that I have access to a scanner, I can share with you something I picked up in Ireland. Another posting coming shortly …
Well … I’m quite behind on things. I have a few weeks of photos to put online: a few from around Dublin, lots from the west of Ireland, and a few more from Northern Ireland. Stay tuned!
I was supposed to fly back to the US at the end of the month, but then a volcano erupted and flight attendants and public transit workers threatened to strike in Britain. With all the uncertainty, my parents called off a planned visit, and I decided it would be better to reschedule my return trip to give myself a little extra time in case of delays. So I came back two days ago, getting out of Dublin an hour or two before the next airport closure and then out of Heathrow a few hours before they closed. I’m catching up on lots of things and will be in touch with friends in Maryland as I find time for things.
My flights to Moscow for Saturday were canceled (due to the volcanic ash), so I’m still in Dublin. This is actually a great relief since I wasn’t as prepared for my presentations as I wanted to be and since I now have more time to work on the projects I am trying to complete for the DHO.
However, I’m starting to wonder about getting back to the US in case the volcano continues to erupt for the next year or two (like in the 1820s). The cheapest cabin on the Queen Mary 2 costs about €500 one way, and I doubt that includes food or anything. Maybe if I agree to wash dishes for whole seven-day journey, I could travel in steerage for free. I could probably hang out with hard-drinking Irish immigrants playing the accordion and fiddle on their way to the New World. It’d be just like in Titantic! … only hopefully without the bad ending.
Anyway, the weather here has been fantastic, without any ash in sight. Since I’ve been working way too much preparing for presentations, I’m trying to get out this weekend and not spend more time in front of a computer. I do, however, owe some of my great photos from my trip to Galway last weekend. Stay tuned …
I decided to give Pablo Picanté another try. Actually two tries.
On the first return visit, I went for the shredded beef burrito. The girl at the counter asked whether I wanted regular or mild salsa. I confidently answered, “Regular.” She asked, “Are you sure? It’s really spicy.” Like an arrogant American, I responded with a completely straight face, “Nothing around here is spicy.” She smiled and said okay, scribbling spicey on my order. Actually, she probably scribbled “extra hot” to get back at me. It was, after all, quite spicey. I guess it tasted good, but I was too busy thinking about how much my mouth was burning that I’m not sure, to be honest.
On my third visit, I went for the vegetarian again. It was evening, so the place wasn’t busy. I got to chatting with the owner about how feta cheese in a burrito is sacrilegious. He said his advisors, including one from California, recommended feta but admitted he’s been having second thoughts. We agreed that if you’re going to put lots of grilled vegetables inside (which turn soggy after sitting in the hot tray for a long time), you need something like feta to balance out the taste, but I told him that what you end up with is not really a burrito (at least in my book). I suggested putting beans in the vegetarian instead of grilled vegetables, thereby allowing him to include a normal cheese to go with the beans.
While I ate my burrito (whose tortilla was too dry), a woman came in and ordered a burrito of her own. She also got to chatting with the owner about the menu options. He started off with “We have a new” before quickly correcting himself: “Well, Pablo has a new” before going on to elaborate about something on the menu. I see he’s taking his “fictional brand ambassador” quite seriously.
I should also report that, while the Mexican food at the farmer’s market is lousy, the adjacent stall with the samosas has good food—perhaps not quite spicy enough but with all the right ingredients … and fresh ones at that!
You know we live in a global world when a French person asks you, “Do you have Starbucks in America?”
I’m learning that people’s phone habits vary by country, not just by language. In Russia, for example, I never learned how to say hello fast enough. You call someone, they answer, and before I have a chance to say something, they’re already saying “hello?” again as if they’re afraid they can’t hear me or I’ve been disconnected already.
In Ireland, on the other hand, what’s different from the US is how you end a phone conversation. Not only do people draw out the word “bye” naturally in everyday conversation, but people here have a bit of competition to see who can get in the last “bye”. What you end up with is both people saying “baaaaaaay-baaaay-bay-baaaaay” until someone gives in and hangs up.
It’s funnier if you hear it, I suppose.
Speaking of colors, it’s getting to be the green time of the year. Green, of course, is associated with spring and St. Patrick’s Day, both of which are approaching quickly.
It’s been getting gradually warmer here, but it’s not as warm as it’s been recently in the US. While places with continental and semi-continental climates (where most of my readers live) are likely to have some more periods of cold before it getting warmer still, around here the daily highs and lows stay practically the same every day, with only minor fluctuation in the seasons. While the grass stays green all winter in this part of the world, there’s still no leaves on the trees.
The past few weeks have been incredibly sunny—even more sunny than I remember when I was here in August—which has been quite welcome. But since yesterday it’s become mostly cloudy like usual, so I suppose all good things must pass.
I’m told that it’s only foreign tourists who wear green on St. Patrick’s Day; I think everyone’s too busy getting drunk to bother. It’s a national holiday here, and the government’s recently expanded the celebrations to include a few days leading up to the day itself. Today I noticed a lot of people wearing green, but that’s because of the big rugby match against Wales today.
I’ve long liked purple clothing, but things in Dublin are getting a bit out of hand with the color. I started noticing purple women’s women’s, but now I’m seeing purple everywhere: shirts, gloves, shoes. It seems to be all the rage this season. Some quick searches online indicate that the fashion began in 2007 or 2008, which makes me wonder it’s Dublin or me that’s a few years behind in noticing.